The new Tesla climbs a curved roof that gets progressively steeper until it looks like it's climbing a wall, then continues moving to a position where it's hanging upside down. When it leaves the roof, it spins in the air and regains its upright position before landing on its wheels, while it can reach 60 miles per hour, or about 96.6 kilometers per hour, in less than a second.
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You may wonder about the secret behind those "acrobatic" maneuvers that the new "Tesla Roadster" car is able to perform. The truth is that the secret always lies in the laws of physics, the ones we learned in middle school.
Think of a book on a table. The ground pulls it down, but it doesn't fall because the table pushes it up. If we want to suspend a car, we must provide adequate force to prevent it from falling as well.
One of these forces comes from the air itself. You might use a rubber band that attaches to the bathroom glass. When you press it against the glass, it forces some air out from underneath, making the air pressure outside greater than the pressure inside. This forces the band against the glass, holding it in place. The key here is the difference in pressure between the two sides.
The roadster uses a similar concept, but with fans that draw air from underneath, near the surface it's driving on. When the pressure there decreases, the surrounding air pressure increases, pushing the car towards the surface. It's like a giant hand pressing the car down on the road.
For example, try pressing a book against a wall with the palm of your hand. Here you can prevent it from falling. The hand represents the force of the pressure difference. Notice that while the book is stuck to the wall, you can push it upwards. Here comes the role of the motors. With the strong pull to the surface, it pushes backwards, so the car moves upwards. Notice that it is a great pressure force that makes the wheels very cohesive with the surface, but it does not stick them to it like glue. The wheels are still able to rotate.
When the car leaves the roof, another story begins. There's no longer a nearby road for it to stick to. This is where propellers are used, expelling compressed gas. To understand this, imagine a balloon that you inflate and then leave without tying its nozzle. The air escapes in one direction, and the balloon is propelled in the opposite direction.
It is Newton's third law that says: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Pushers work on the same principle; when you expel gas backwards, you push the car forwards, and when you expel it downwards, you push it upwards.
These propellers don't require burning fuel inside; the gas is stored under pressure and then released rapidly, much like a balloon. However, their fuel supply does expend, which is why short jumps differ from continuous flight. Nevertheless, all the car needs is a few short jumps.
As for twisting in the air, it depends on the position of the push. Think of your bedroom door; opening it by the handle is easier than pushing it near the hinges.
Here we learn that the position of a force changes its ability to rotate an object. Similarly, a force far from the center of a car can make it spin, and then another appropriate force will help stop its rotation when its wheels are facing the ground.
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